Slight Detour: Moyie Loop Drive

Four and one-half hours from Selle with a few stops at Bonners Ferry Super 1 and Three-Mile store for supplies and, of course, for taking pictures.

That's how long it takes to do the Moyie River loop drive from our house.

If you decide to stop at Feist Creek Falls Restaurant for a sit-down bite to eat, add an extra hour.

I was told the first time I ever walked into the place with Feist Creek Falls in the back and a pond full of huge trout which perform for bread treats in the front that they're Libby's best restaurant.

And, Libby, Mont., might even be as far a drive as the one Bill and I took yesterday, especially in the winter time.

Feist Creek Falls is owned by members of the Naples Kramer family. Yesterday, sisters Candy and Lacey Doolin (whose mother is a Kramer) were running the bar and restaurant.

We've stopped there numerous times while taking one of our most favorite driving loops. There are several superlatives which could describe yesterday's experience. I'll pick one.

Magnificent.

That's the only way to describe yesterday's deep blue skies and abundant sunshine. Add to that a coat of brilliant white snow pack pretty much everywhere. Twas especially dramatic as we passed through the huge farm fields of the rich Kootenai Valley.

Along roadsides with big expanses of cut-and-fill slopes along either side, imagine strings of snake-like dotted trails extending up and down those slopes where only critters have interrupted the perfection of the snow.

I took pictures of scenes where I have taken dozens of pictures before.

As I told Bill, every moment in every scene is different at any time of the day and any time of the year. That's what makes the hobby of photography so much fun.

Every image is unique, no matter how many times we point and shoot.

During other seasons, Feist Creek Falls usually drop down the mountain behind the restaurant in a variety of thin, intricate cascades.

Well, cold weather and Mother Nature have put most of that action on hold.

Though water is moving from above, only a portion within the ice formations has gotten the green light to flow into the fish pond.

I asked Candy if the trout in the pond would survive this winter. She's unsure, adding that their aerator isn't working.

Further on down from Feist Creek Falls, we stopped two or three times for photos along the Moyie, where Bill and Willie love to fish in summer and fall.

The usual photogenic marshmallow snow puffs had formed on the rocks, and the river looked just plain frigid where water could be seen. Several areas of the Moyie and other smaller streams are frozen over with blankets of snow.

As we moved on and reached one of my favorite wide open meadows with old structures alongside the road, we stopped again for pictures.

All in all, yesterday provided another "get-out-of-the-house" for Bill and a fun photo outing for me.

We never tire of that loop drive, and for anyone in the area who's never taken it, give it a try.

When we returned to the house, the fire in the stove was still burning and the TV's four hours of continuous entertainment for Foster and Liam had ended, due to energy saving.

So, I'm thinking both at home in the living room and along the road, a good time was had by all.

Another beautiful cold day ahead, and the ZAGS who finished a perfect WCC season remain No. 1 in the nation for this week and next.

Happy Monday.

This is the cold, frozen Moyie along the Copper Falls Road near Eastport.

The road has not had a lot of use during this past month of snow, so we decided it would be wise to turn around after driving a couple of miles.

After all, Bill's knee roller is not exactly set up for winter scooting, so we played it safe.